Pages

Saturday, December 1, 2012

Join The December Sanity Challenge 2012

This year, more than any other, I'm hearing how stressed you all feel. Cluttered. Overworked and undernourished. Me too.

And I'm beginning to realize, more than ever, that the only person who can change this is you. You and I, we're not responsible for the culture that idolizes work and leaves no time for personal self-care. But we are the only ones who can change that, and only by the direct action of choosing how we want to be in this world.

We get to choose. We get to choose how we raise our children and what we raise them to believe. If we raise them to believe that their worth is determined by a 9 to 5. Or that they are so much more than that.

They are the dreams they envision, the poems they write, the paintings they draw. They are the cats and dogs they play with and the blackberries they eat right from the bush. Their lives are as rich, as elegant, as vast as they can imagine them to be.

And so is yours.

It's hard to remember that you are the ultimate maker of decisions in your life. But you are.

So let's talk about the life you choose to live.

Let's talk about a challenge. To do exactly what you want to be doing, what you're called to do, and what makes you sing with joy.

December Sanity Challenge 2012Let's start today with the second annual December Sanity Challenge. This is a challenge to you to make sure you're not getting caught up in the insanity of the holiday craze and that you're living your life to the fullest. Not my life. Not your neighbor's. Yours.

My challenge for you, first, is to think about what exactly this means to you. How do you want to live your life? Are there changes that need to be made? What excuses are you using to avoid making those changes?What do the holidays mean to you and what can you do this month to make sure you stay true to that?

To take it a step further, blog on what you plan to do this month to be happy, healthy, and sane. (If you don’t have a blog and want to play, e-mail me and I’ll post your goals!) I'll be doing the same later this month, but I'm starting today. I know what kind of life I want to live, I know when I'm making excuses, and I'm taking a step today to stop making excuses and start choosing my life.

Goal #1 for the challenge: Stop telling myself I don't have time to take care of myself. Only when I stop telling myself this story will Ibe able to make the changes I need to. As a little added incentive, for each post on your intentions and
your progress you link back here or one of the other co-hosts, you’ll be
entered to receive a $50 gift certificate to Nuts.com (they are not sponsoring, our founder, Cheryl, just wanted something with healthy
gluten-free, vegan, sugar-free, etc. options). The delicious Ms. Carrie
Forbes of Carrie of Ginger Lemon Girl has also generously donated 2 signed cookbooks: The Everything Gluten-Free Slow Cooker Cookbook.I’ll be joined by a wonderful group of co-hosts:

Last, we do have a Facebook group–if
you’d like to join, you’re more than welcome. It’s a space to support
and be supported, and it’s the same one we used during the last
Self-Care Retreat.

p.s. Beginning tomorrow, the next four days will be dedicated to reviews of gluten-free cookbooks and products that I think will make lovely holiday gifts. And each one will include a giveaway! See you tomorrow!

3 comments:

What a fantastic, brilliant post! I love it. I have not been blogging for a while, and doing it now would just add more of the stress I want to eliminate right now, but I do want to join in on the challenge to make changes. My first goal is to keep coming back to 'me' inside. I get really caught up in what others need/want/think and I really need to live my own life and take care of me. I love what you said here: "To do exactly what you want to be doing, what you're called to do, and what makes you sing with joy."